There is something rather cool about the gold Kala Electric Owl. Part retro electric guitar, part ukulele, and with plenty of glamour, this is a solid-body steel-string tenor ukulele from Kala’s Revelator series. The gold finish gives it a particularly striking look, complemented by chrome hardware and a bright white scratch guard. It certainly isn't trying to blend into the background!

I first got to play the Electric Owl at the Ukulele Festival of Great Britain, where I spent some time with one on the Kala UK stand. I have played steel-string electro tenors for quite a while, including my own on stage with my band, so I know there can be a little bit of an adjustment when moving from conventional nylon-string ukuleles to steel strings.

The main thing to get used to is your fretting pressure. Steel strings don't need the same amount of force as nylon strings, and if you squeeze the neck too firmly you can actually push the notes sharp. That's something experienced steel-string players tend to compensate for automatically, but it can be a bit of a surprise if you're coming to this style of ukulele for the first time.

The Electric Owl impressed me in that respect. I started off playing it as I would my own steel-string uke and it immediately produced a really nice, clean sound. There is plenty of tonal flexibility too, thanks to the combination of a single-coil neck pickup and humbucker bridge pickup. A three-way selector switch lets you choose the neck pickup, bridge pickup or both together, giving you a good range of sounds from a relatively straightforward control layout.

Then I decided to see just how badly I could make it behave. I switched back into ‘ukulele player who has never touched steel strings’ mode and deliberately fretted much harder than I normally would. Despite gripping the thing like I was trying to strangle it, I still struggled to make it sound truly awful! The lighter touch you would normally use with steel strings definitely gives better results, but the neck and string tension have clearly been considered carefully, making the Electric Owl much more forgiving than some steel-string ukuleles can be.

That makes this a particularly interesting option for anyone who wants to explore steel strings without having to completely rethink their playing technique. For experienced steel-string players it is an enjoyable and versatile electric tenor, while newcomers should find it relatively approachable.

The KA-EO-RGT-T has a 38mm nut width and comes fitted with D’Addario EXL110 strings. It is supplied as a low-G ukulele and has two strap buttons already fitted. A padded gig bag is included, although the unusual solid-body shape means it will not fit a standard ukulele hard case. The supplied bag is therefore the sensible way to transport it.